


Recruiting a Superboy.

by QueenAshe (queenofdespair)



Series: Countdown of the Infinite Worlds: Eradication [1]
Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Canon Character of Color, Canon Compliant, Canon Rewrite, Canon-Typical Violence, Fix-It, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Kon-el centric, Krypton, Kryptonian Biology, Kryptonian Culture & Customs, Mentions of War, Minor Canonical Character(s), Minor Character Death, Minor Original Character(s), N.O.W.H.E.R.E, New 52, Origin Story, POV Canon Character, POV First Person, Project Cadmus, Superboy centric, Worldbuilding, half kryptonian biology anyway, mentions of Brother Eye, past Krypton
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-02
Updated: 2019-01-14
Packaged: 2019-05-18 12:37:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14852895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenofdespair/pseuds/QueenAshe
Summary: "I did not ask to be created. But I will decide the time and circumstance of my termination."-Superboy #5.--He is the latest experiment of a secret organization called "N.O.W.H.E.R.E" (which was previously Project Cadmus).It begins with a project, a living weapon. "It" has no other purpose than to destroy, to rage, and subjugate. "It" is not a human. "It" is not a boy. "It" doesn't have feelings, thoughts or a conscious.And "it" is called Superboy.--Alternatively, the origin story that new 52 Superboy deserved and not the bullshit, convoluted, time-travel bs we got.





	1. Countdown Tie-In #1, Part 1. "The Clone".

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1 of the Countdown Series. 
> 
> "Superboy" awakens. 
> 
> Or N.O.W.H.E.R.E. realizes that they've made a mistake.

_**Prime Earth, A N.O.W.H.E.R.E. base.... somewhere.** _

 

**_??? POV:_  **

_Wet. Distant voices.._

_I hear people.. beeps? Devices? Machines?_

_I know it's technology. Technology... the thing that they depend on, I believe.._

_I'm not sure. My eyes aren't open. It's not that I can't open them.. but rather, I don't._

_My consciousness is in and out..._

_Perhaps that is why I'm still here..._

_Maybe they're waiting for me to decide.. no, my body to decide... whether to wake up or not..._

 

_\----_

 

 _"Three months,"_ the dark-skinned scientist told his red-headed co-worker. "It's been far too long, Dr. Fairchild. The subject hasn't been responsive to any shocks or treatments."

" _He,"_ the young woman -- who pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose -- corrected, fiercely. "He's a  _boy._ He has a name." 

The older man -- who looked to be in his early forties, what with his graying, short, black afro-textured hair -- sighed. " _Superboy,"_ he corrected. "Has not been responsive to anything. Whether I call the subject by the cute name you gave him or not, this does not change a thing." A pause. He pinched the bridge of his nose, and turned towards the glass tube housing said subject; a fair-skinned boy who looked like he was at least seventeen. A bald-headed boy at that as well. (It confused the scientists on why he was bald-headed at first, but then clicked that it was most likely attributed to one of ' _Superboy's_ unwilling and unknowing genetic parent, a certain  _Luthor_ ). "There are no brain waves from 02 at all. On  _any level."_

 _"_ _Superboy,"_ Fairchild insisted once more. The woman's gloved fingers tightly clutched at the clipboard that she held to her chest; the notes that she's been taking while studying Superboy/"02". Her bottom lip jutted out slightly and she breathed out from her nose. She hated how frustrated she was -- openly so -- about everyone's constant  _dehumanizing_ of the subject. Granted, Superboy is a creation; a  _clone_ that was the first of his kind; a trans-terrestrial one, but  _still._ He was half human. You would think that people would consider that part.  _At least._ "Dr. White," she spoke firmly, as if to get a hold on herself. "Superboy is a fusion -- the first of his kind, need I remind you -- that is of Human DNA  _and_ Kryptonian? It is possible-- no, it is more  _likely_  that his brain works in a way that is not comprehensible to us. In ways that we can't even begin to imagine." She looked past her co-worker, gazing up at the glass tube housing the boy. She felt her lips become heavy and let it hang, a frown forming. 

For three months and a half, she's hoped. 

For three months and a half, she's come in to talk to him when nobody else would. 

For three months and a half, she's come to think of him as a son. 

And god have mercy on those that dare to take him away from her just because they thought he was a "failure". 

But now... even she was starting to waver... 

Dr. White saw it. Maybe that was why he came up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder. His hard, navy-colored eyes followed her gaze, into the subject's seemingly lifeless eyes. "I am aware. Painfully aware, Caitlin," he replied, a bit forcefully. "Which is why I must terminate this project. I apologize for dragging you into this. I can now see the adverse effects it is has had on your psyche." He squeezed her shoulder, and let his arm drop at his side. 

"Don't. Mike," Caitlin Fairchild almost pleaded, mentally kicking herself for getting so attached to it--  _him._ It was more than apparent that she had more than created a made-up bond with the clone. "It doesn't have to end here. We can still--" 

"Not according to the people upstairs," Mike White interrupted. He exhaled calmly from his mouth. "They believe that an autopsy is in order. Actually, I think they've already  _planned_ for it. The clone's entrails might reveal where we messed up," he told her. "Mistakes can be corrected if we know the source of it." 

"But what if the only mistake we make is in assumption?" She countered, her arms out to the side, her frown making a home on her face. She was aware that she was grasping at straws. The Doctor was getting so desperate that she'd all but missed the autopsy part.  _'They can't...!'_

"What if our assumptions- our perception is wrong? We're expecting him to act like a human because he looks like on-"

" _It_ ," Mike corrects -- a bit annoyed at the woman's persistence. "Again... I apologize for dragging you into this project. I now know that you lack the mental and emotional fortitude for it. You were warned on the very first day to avoid attachment- to avoid bonding with it. But that is not your fault. It is mine. I should have used my better judgement." 

"Mike, what are you-"

"You are dismissed from Project Superboy. You are no longer needed, Doctor. That is what I am saying." 

Her mouth dropped open, her eyes widened in disbelief and dread. If anyone knew Mike, it would have been Caitlin Fairchild -- she's taken the time to get to know all of her co-workers in the short, yet arduous three months and a half that it took to get this project running off of the ground. She knew him on a business level, but there were some personal things that he felt confident to disclose with her. Such as being the reason why he was so strict. 

He lost a daughter a year ago. She was a stillborn. His wife was a wreck; a crying, self-hating mess that he tried so desperately to save. To re-assure her and tell her that she was okay, and that he didn't hate her or blame her for losing the child. She committed suicide by pill overdose a few months later. Mike was never the same since then, he told her. He'd become cold, jaded and a bit harsh. For those that didn't know Mike, they would think him as cold-hearted; a jerk. A cruel dictator of sorts. He wasn't at all. 

_Just a hurt man who was still grieving._

So when he issued his order, Caitlin didn't fight. She didn't yell or scream. She understood. The pale-skinned woman merely bowed her head towards her co-worker and superior; her equal (off-business hours, at least), and said,

"Y-yes, sir." 

She straightened herself up, and held her notes; her precious notes to her chest as tightly as she could, as if her heart could protect them from every type of harm in the world. She paused for a moment or two, and then turned on the balls of her feet and left the room, a single tear rolling down her cheek. 

\----

**_Superboy's POV:_ **

_I was drifting in and out... Being barely awake is not as fun as it sounds._

_I wish my body would decide too. Perhaps that's why I'm in this liquid jail cell... to stabilize me. I know that I have powers... Because I can hear them._

_I am capable of cognitive thinking and language. Somehow. I've been studying them as long as they've been studying me._

_But even so, I didn't quite catch all of their interaction but I sense... something wrong._

_The one woman that they call Fairchild... or 'Red' sometimes, I think she's ... leaving? The only person that looks at me and not through me..._

_Why... why does she seem.. sad...?_

_What's going on?_

_I hear silence now._

_No, I hear voices again... but this time they're.. clearer.. louder.._

_What are they saying...?_

_\---_

"Gentlemen, initiate the Termination Protocol," ordered Dr. Mike White. 

Masked scientists that were in the room pulled up virtual screens, some with visuals of Superboy's vital signs, others with measured readings of his heart rate, brain wave patterns etc. 

From outside the room -- stood a desperate Dr. Caitlin Fairchild -- who was shedding more silent tears. She pressed her face and hands against the transparent glass door, her heart caught in her throat so damn badly that she couldn't even form a proper sentence.  _'Please.. Show them that you're awake. Fight, Superboy..! Fight!'_

"I'm sorry, Superboy," Mike White uttered. "You deserved better." 

_\---_

_Something is wrong. Definitely wrong._

_\---_

"300 CC's of Cyanide. Ionize Charging." 

\---

_I sense finality... Resignation.._

_Wait... my veins... my insides... they're... burning...!_

_\---_

_"AAAAAAARGH!"_

_Boom! Bam! Btpum!_

The lab began to explode violently; entire desks sparking with aggressive electricity. A scientist got shocked in the face, which disrupted the sensor in their mask, causing it to short circuit. Another scientist went flying into a wall at another sudden explosion -- this time, coming from a piece of the wall. Entire compartments came undone, wires exposed, creating a fire hazard. 

\----

_Pain... can't stop.._

_Hurts... everything.... hurts! Stop._

_Stop!_

_STOP!_

_\---_

_"We're under attack!"_ A woman yelled. "But I can't tell from where, sir-- aAAGH!" She stumbled over her footing and fell backward at a violently sparking keyboard. 

"Dammit!" Mike yelled. He gritted his teeth; his navy colored eyes quickly sweeping around the room for the source. "Shit-- It's the damn clone!" He yelled. He narrowly missed a falling piece of debris that fell from the roof of the room. He put his hands over his head to protect himself, while yelling, "Clear the room! Clear it now! We've most likely triggered a -- damn it--  it's natural defense system!" He turned on the balls of his feet to run out of the room, but was blasted forward by another explosion; feeling the heat on his back. 

He most likely wasn't going to make it. 

And he knew. 

_'I'm coming home to you, Elise.'_

"Open!  _Open_ , damn it!!" Caitlin yelled desperately at the machine. She was panicking so much that the recognition system could barely pick up her shaking, trembling hand. Not until she stood still enough to witness a familiar face run towards the door, thinking that it was open. 

"Recognized: Dr. Caitlin--"

"Dr. Whit--!!" Her yell of concern was caught in her throat.  
  
The door opened a second too late; it and Caitlin's clothes and face becoming stained in the color of red; red and pink. 

His blood and brain matter. Remains of his destroyed gray uniform crashed to the ground, the symbol of N.O.W.H.E.R.E rolling over to sit at her feet.

Her frame trembled as she slumped to the ground.  _'No... no... nononononononononono-'_

_To be continued..._


	2. Countdown Tie-In #1, Part 2."Wrath of the Clone."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1.2 of the Countdown Series. 
> 
> Superboy wasn't the only one who woke up. Here starts Superboy's first test: Survival. 
> 
> Or, "Superboy Vs. Rose Wilson.... Agent of N.O.W.H.E.R.E!".
> 
> Featuring a cameo from a mysterious woman from a distant world, an ominous message and not a lot of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of perspectives and scene changes. Sorry! Trying to paint the whole picture by using 1st and 3rd person because I really love how New 52 did it in Superboy's comic run. (That and I'm basically experimenting to see if I like this writing style. I do, and it's fun but it's ... alot to type the character's thoughts and feelings and then also type what's going on at the same time. I won't really be employing this method for the entirety of this story. Probably just for Superboy/Kon because I love the fucker a shit ton -- that and it just feels right with the way that we're headed).*
> 
> *Unless ya'll like it then I'll try it some more.

_Continued from previous point:_

_"Clear the room! Clear it now! We've most likely triggered a -- damn it--  it's natural defense system!"_

_\---_

**_Basement, Lower level of N.O.W.H.E.R.E. base..._ **

 

"Shouldn't we step in, Lord Harvest?" 

"No, we shouldn't," came the raspy reply of the leader of N.O.W.H.E.R.E. "Everything is going according to plan. What is there to worry about?" 

The woman looking at the screen -- a rather large one twice her height (she's 4'5") --  with crossed her arms under her bosom. A small frown tugged at her lips. "At this rate, 02 will destroy the entire second level." 

" _Superboy_ ," Harvest corrected -- not as fiercely as Caitlin Fairchild -- but just as forcefully. The man -- or what was once a man, anyway -- turned his head towards his subordinate, the reflection of the monitor dancing across the red screen of what could be considered his "face".

"Pardon, Lord Harvest--? _Superboy_?" 

"I've told the staff to refer to the subject as such for reasons that will soon be revealed... There is a mind he possesses- a  _powerful_ one inside his body that only required a proper... jump start. Fairchild's the only one who could see that." 

The woman nearly forgot -- it was easy to, admittedly -- she wasn't required to interact with the clone. She still had questions, however. Harvest seemed...  _really_ interested in the subject-- even more so than the countless others that they've experimented on thus far... The employee's lips rested in a straight-line, her chin resting on the back of her intertwined hands, watching the chaos unfold..

Dr. Mike White tried to run to the door, but was unfortunately reduced to a messy stain on the lab floor --- his uniform exploded along with his flesh, his brain matter and blood splattered all over the walls, and on a numb, very obviously grieving Caitlin Fairchild. The lab was crumbling, fire erupting and consumed large part of the room. Glass shattered and various desks and electronically device sparked with an aggressive spirit that was all-too-well-timed to have been coincidence... 

\---

_**Lab Room 021, Second Level.** _

 ...Because everyone was dying _simultaneously_. 

And she was witnessing it. 

"STOP!" Caitlin yelled, wobbling to her feet. "You're ki--... oh.. my.. _god._.." Again, her voice died in her throat as she was interrupted by the sight unfolding before her eyes; Superboy -- who had just moments before, broke his glass tube and was now _free_ \-- was hovering some feet above the ground. His facial expression was unreadable and his stiff body language didn't help to decipher what she thought was going through the clone's mind. She knew that she should be frightened for her life (rightfully so because he dispatched a handsome number of 30+ N.O.W.H.E.R.E scientists like  _nothing_ in the span of what felt like no longer than five seconds) -- but she had so many questions. So many mixed feelings.  _'He's awake.'_ Was one of her first thoughts.  _'I'm not crazy, and he's finally awake.'_ Then followed by,  _'He killed everyone... subconsciously. Without meaning to. He killed Mike... Mike's dead.. he's gone. Everyone is gone....'._ Her lips hung open slightly and she gave herself a minute to properly digest the situation… “You’re… you’re floating? How…?” 

  
It was then, that Superboy somehow began _falling_.

\---

**_Superboy’s POV:_ **

_Hands. Body. Air. Touch. Feel._

**_Awake._ **

_I’m… awake?  Completely...? My glass tube… it’s broken. Destroyed. Shattered. Did I do that?_

_Judging by the raging fire around me and countless… rubble, and debris, most likely._

_This is … me. This is my hand. My feet. My body. My power._

_**I’m free**. _

_This is my freedom--_

_...Huh? Red? She’s still alive? What? Her lips are moving, but I can't make out what she's saying... Voices sound different… clearer. Louder._

_I don't know how to tune in yet but... I try._

I hear everything at once  and it hurts --- Red’s cries, the voice on the P.A. system announce an alarm calling for backup. I realize how  **loud** everything is. For some reason, the phrase "my ears are ringing" come to mind. Once again, I am made aware that I have access to things I shouldn't.... I have knowledge at my fingertips. Things I've never personally studied. Data. 

Numbers. 

Information that's been implanted in me someho--!!! 

Descending. No -- forceful! Much more forceful! This is gravity. Then, acceleration. I'm not hovering anymore. I'm falling.  

Very fast! 

_\---_

_  
_ Driven by impulse, Caitlin’s body dived under him just in time to catch the falling subject--- erm, _boy_. A loud curse left the scientist's mouth upon impact, followed with some hissing between a clenched jaw. She then grunted and rubbed at the left shoulder. They both had collided into a pile of spare parts; some of them almost piercing and breaking her skin through her uniform. "Are you alright? Can you hear me?" 

The boy opened his mouth but only a wheezing sound came out. He propped himself up with his arms into a sitting position and then coughed into his fist, eyebrows furrowed into each other.  _'Verbal speech sounds... even weirder. My hearing's picking up what sounds like a rough tone. Like that of someone that's never spoken before. Wait.. that's my voice. I think?'_

"Superboy, can you talk?" Caitlin tried again, raising her voice. (God, this alarm system was _LOUD_.) She winced, sticking her fingers into her ears. 

The boy's unreadable expression shifted into something else and softened up-- he blinked for the very first time since he got of his tube and rubbed at his eyes. He opened his mouth and involuntarily breathed in, coughing. He also wasn't used to having to "breathe"... He then looked at Caitlin, as if seeing her for the first time, and tried to talk again. But before he could verify it, the sound of furious, hurried footsteps filled the hallway into the room, followed by an order to switch off the alarm and at least four people putting out the fire with extinguishers. 

"Colonel--!" Caitlin shot up immediately. She looked down to see that he and the backup requested were all carrying weapons. "What are you--?"

"Congratulations, Doctor," he regarded her callously, pointing his gun at the clone. "Quite a monster you made here," the man sneered. He was a short brown haired, olive-skinned man built like an Olympian athlete (probably because he used to one, but that was neither here or there -- she had a habit of 'eavesdropping' when she shouldn't on her lunch breaks). "You should step out of the way if you don't want to be splattered just like the rest of the eggheads currently decorating these walls." 

"I can't," Caitlin stood in front of Superboy. "Colonel Maudlin, as Senior Scientist of Project Superboy, everything that happened here is my fault. I.. accept full responsibility." 

There was a pause before Maudlin laughed to Caitlin's chagrin. "Senior? _Seriously ?!_ What's next, Red? You're gonna ask me to consider its itty-bitty feelings? Get over yourself." With his head, he gestured for the rest of his squad to move in and surround the clone. "I won't ask again. Step _aside_. These are orders from the the big boss 'upstairs'. It's bigger than the both of us, so you could just you know, move your ass TODAY, that'd make my job easier."

From behind them, Superboy blinked again, watching with an unreadable expression once more.  _'They're going back and forth... Is this conflict? ....Is this.... because I woke up..?'_

 _"...exacerbating the situation!_ Look all around you!" Caitlin countered. "We don't even know the depths of his abilities! What if you just set him off again?! It's obvious that I need-- we need more time to study him!"

" _Exactly_. Which is why _we're_ here for him." His gun powered up. "You're no longer needed. You've done your part. Don't make me do it. I will shoot you if I have to. Last time I'm warning you, Fairchild. Step. _ASIDE_."

She ground her teeth together, taking a step back. "No!" Sweat began to gather at her forehead as she clenched a fist, her other hand approaching her glasses to take them off. 

However she was stopped short of any physical labor, as a dangerously calm voice from behind her filled her eardrums.

 _"I understand now."_   

Colonel Mauldin's eyes widened as the metal of his gun peeled back layer by layer. The same was happening to the outer layer of his uniform --- and to the people that came with him. One by one, they were all lifted off the ground. The bodies groaned, writhing in pain. Superboy was standing, both hands outstretched. He lowered his head, furrowing his eyebrows. A straight line painted his features. As if on autopilot, the boy extended his arms to either side of him, throwing all of the soldiers into the walls, some of them going _SPLAT!_

Caitlin turned around, her jaw dropping. _Again_. Superboy's face was still largely unreadable, but by the look on his face, namely the ever so faint curved ends of his lips, that he seemed to be... _enjoying_ this. 

\--- 

_"So are you going to give up on this or what? It's almost been a month and the subject's eyes hasn't opened."_

_"Su-per-boy," An agitated Caitlin Fairchild reminded her fellow female agent._

_"Number 02," the silver-haired teenager responded with a condescending tone. "A clone is still a clone whether you give him a name or not."_

_Caitlin narrowed her eyes. "I'm not repeating myself again, Rose. He's my responsibility, so I'd like it very much if you didn't belittle me about it. Besides, you're a clone too."_

_"So?" the girl rested her hand on the hilt of her sword. "Did I strike a nerve?"_

_Caitlin's fist curled up into a ball. "I'll strike you, if you aren't careful, you damn hypocrite."_

_"Do it. Get suspended and your subject shut down, Red." Rose sneered. "If you have the balls to do it." She smirked, putting her hands on her hips. "A reminder that if you do; you'll never be cured. You'll die without even knowing if you're the real deal or not."_

_Caitlin scowled, biting her tongue. 'I'm.. not a clone,' she thought. 'I'm the real Caitlin, unlike you, fake..'_

_Rose Wilson-- another co-worker of hers didn't believe in her goal. No, she was like everyone else; N.O.W.H.E.R.E. believed in almost instantaneous results. Granted, they had advanced tech like she's never seen, but she knew that even with the finest tech, some projects wouldn't be done in strict deadlines like the organization was imposing._

_Deadlines were very important, and to say that she, herself, wasn't feeling pressured would be the understatement of the year... after all, the boss of the organization who was only known as "Harvest" stressed it in her acceptance video. (She didn't even get to see their face since it was a black screen, but she assumed it was a male from the deep, raspy voice.) He also stressed that failure wasn't tolerated..._

_Failure meant more than being fired.. the specifics were never outright said, but by how everything was ran... she could tell that it was more than not accepted. It wasn't even a "concept"._

_In other words, she couldn't afford to fail._

_\---_

"Superboy... Stop. Superboy! STOP!" She yelled, trying to get him to lower his arms. "You're.. you've--!" 

A shimmering red aura surrounded him, and moved slowly outwards. He curled up his hands into fists, and brought them down in an X-formation; throwing the soldiers off of the walls and causing them to explode in a shower of terrified screams, blood, dismembered body parts and internal organs (if they too, were intact). He looked up, and examined his carnage; his smirk never having left. His unnatural shade of blue eyes met Caitlin's frightened greens. She took a step back. "They deserved it." Was his second sentence. He uncurled his fists and looked at his bloodstained hands, in awe of himself, presumably. (He also had to now learn facial cues and expressions).

"Are.... are you aware of where you are right now?"

"A facility called N.O.W.H.E.R.E." He let his face muscles relax. "You're Caitlin Fairchild. They also call you Red. You're my caretaker. The closest thing I have to a mother." 

Caitlin nodded. She wet her lips. "So then you also know.."

"My reason for existing." He answered immediately. He set a foot in front of one, then the other. He also wasn't used to having to balance himself, but he got the hang of it within seconds. He was a fast learner, as she witnessed him teach himself to walk-- and walk he did. _Right to her_. Never did Caitlin ever feel so ... small before. While at her current height, she stood at 5'6", Superboy stood at 5'11". Days, weeks, months-- she was the one to always look up at him, but having it reversed, felt weird to the scientist. 

He and Caitlin stood there, exchanging silent looks for what felt like several minutes before she broke the silence first. The crunch of broken glass under her boot was what filled the room as she turned her back to him. Tears stung her waterline, and she placed a hand over her mouth to silence herself. She couldn't believe it. It was happening. The day was here.  _Superboy was awake._

For three months and a half, she's looked over him and oversaw his progress. 

For three months and a half, she was the only one who had hope that he would eventually wake. 

For three months and a half, she dreamed of this very scenario. 

Three months and a half later, she's standing before her first major project and even though it should have been a victory, it felt _hollow,_ and she couldn't figure out _why._

Caitlin ... _cried_. 

_\---_

_**Basement, Lower level of N.O.W.H.E.R.E. base...** _

The brown-haired woman sat with a stiff neck. Harvest, her superior told her to keep watch on the unfolding events, so she did.

"She's not receiving him well, Lord Harvest. She seems... conflicted. Is this also part of the plan for the clone?"

A camera zoomed in to Caitlin's tear-stricken face; her eyes were shut and she had a hand on her chest, as if she had a hard time believing the situation. The camera zoomed out as it then zoomed into Superboy's face. He stared blankly, most likely confused. He reached out for Caitlin, but she didn't move. 

"Yes." He walked to the opposite side of the room. The screen in front of him blinked to life, a grainy image showing a similar tube to Superboy's. Except the room was not well-kept; dust and cobwebs were intimate with each other, they overtook corners, unopened cardboard boxes, and the sides of the project's tubes. This subject was suspended in a blue liquid, and had a symbol on his left pectoral muscle, that of a DNA strand. "But the real test of his abilities start here."

"Are you referring to the Subject 01? Oh, I apologize.."

\---

[ "I have forgotten that he also has a name. Project Match." ]

_**????** _

The tube's glass gained a crack in it. Traces of water pushed against the cracks of the glass, leaking out in small amounts. His eyes opened and the glass broke completely. 

\---

For some reason, things seemed to crawl into a slow-stop. Something caught Superboy's attention -- an object whizzing through the air. Caitlin turned around, her arms out as if to move him. Not expecting it, the clone moved out of the way -- but as soon as he did, the object revealed itself. Impaling the red-head scientist was a lengthy sword lodged in her ribcage, piercing the bottom half of her heart. She wheezed, and coughed, blood staining the corners of her mouth. He heard Caitlin's voice, but it was distorted. She crumpled up onto the floor, and fell on her side. The world sped up again, and he blinked a couple of times. Shudders racked Caitlin's body as she, to no avail, reached for the hilt of the sword, to try to pull it out of herself. She couldn't reach, and the pain of merely trying reduced her to silent tears. "Su--Kh!" She coughed once, then again, going into a fit of sorts where more blood stained her gloves and the floor. The syllables died in her throat, and she was to follow soon. She was starting to feel cold. 

Superboy watched her face, noting that her "vital signs" were lessening. The woman was dying before his very eyes. 

The woman who had hoped for him for three and a half months. 

The woman who had fought for his right to exist, for three and a half months. 

The woman who was now leaving him, after being there for him for three and a half months. 

\--

["He has no conscious, as you can see. That comes from his human half."

"The man named Lex Luthor, correct?"

"Yes. One of the most brilliant minds on the face of this planet. Ruthless, imaginative, and efficient in all he does. The perfect antithesis to the Man of Steel."

"But he's also of Superman's DNA, sir."

"I'm well aware. Have you ever wondered what would happen if Superman had no humanity, no goodwill, and no restraints? Well... keep watching."] 

\--

 _Click, clack_... _click, clack_. 

"So.. you've finally woke up, huh?" The N.O.W.H.E.R.E. agent smirked. She walked over to Caitlin's body, twisted the sword and pulled it out. Fairchild passed with a shudder, and no energy to do anything else but pathetically whimper. The silver-haired woman shook the blood off and smacked the blades against each other. 

Superboy looked at the newcomer and narrowed his eyes. "Rose Wilson. Your code-name is Ravager...." 

"Oh wow, he's so smart," Rose retorted. "Can you count to three, too? Are you angry at me for killing the only family you'll have?" 

The clone blinked. "....are you trying to provoke me?" 

"Is it working?" 

"No. You need better insults. A chair could do better than that." 

Rose raised an eyebrow. "Calling me stupid?" 

"Well, you obviously aren't smart. I just killed almost everyone in here and the first thing you do is--" 

Rose threw another sword at him, but Superboy craned his neck to the side, just missing it. Rose rushed forward with a yell, but Superboy didn't move. She swung her other sword at him, but the blade broke upon contact with his face. She gasped and her eyes widened. She went for a punch, but Superboy caught her fist and shoved her back "gently", sending her crashing into an already dented and cracked wall. She got to her feet, but not quick enough because Superboy  _ran_ to her, kicking up a gust of wind that blew her hair back. She attempted to reach into her utility belt to get something, but was cut off by Superboy's grip on her neck. 

"I haven't been alive for less than ten minutes but I know that interrupting people when they're speaking is rude." 

He squeezed, his grip tightening some more. Rose clawed at his hand, gritting her teeth with effort as she attempted to get him to loosen up. She struggled to breathe, so she got the idea to use his weight against him by swinging her lower body back enough to lock her legs around his arm. However, as she got a firm hold on him to do so, Superboy tossed her aside like a ragdoll, roughly this time. Rose's back collided with another wall as she landed across the room, banging her head against the floor. She heard her bones crack, and she tasted copper in her mouth. Broken glass got into her skin, piercing through her uniform. A gash opened across her forehead.

\---

_**Superboy's POV:** _

_I have no idea who this Rose Wilson is. My databases only say that she's a N.O.W.H.E.R.E agent... a clone like me with a question mark next to her designation. She has slightly precognitive abilities._

_My data also says that all of her senses are heightened past normal human limits. So she's a superhuman assassin, who thinks she's a clone. Her brainwave patterns suggest that she might have suffered some signs of intervention and tampering._

_She's a glorified lapdog._

_Disposable._

_Just like Red._

I watch her cough up more blood, and glare at me like she hates me-- no, she probably does. Rightfully so. I think I cracked some of her ribs. 

She's getting up again. 

_She also has some healing properties._

_This should be interesting._

_I don't know what my face is doing, but I feel one half of my lips curve up._ My fists are balled up and my body tenses up for a fight. 

I'm ready to win. I'm ready to _kill_ her. 

_\---_

["The reason why he is called Superboy, you see... is because I want the world to know who is responsible for it's destruction. He will be nothing more than a merciless killer; a brutal fighter. _A living weapon_ , if you will. Superman's powers and skill-set, uninhibited, and Luthor's intelligence, cunning and crave for power. A perfect marriage of two different races; a perfect hybrid, unlike Match." 

"Match came first. But that was before we took over Project Cadmus, if I'm correct, sir?"

"Yes. Very much so."

"Then why did we keep it?" 

"We needed an outline for what Superboy would be. Nothing more, nothing less." 

"But... without the tank stabilizing him, won't Match eventually..."

"Also part of the grand scheme of things. People, animals, and plants are meant to live and die unless man can help it. Not all of us can be immortal physically. There are some types of immortality that transcends time and space... such as the tangibility of ideas and dreams realized..."] 

\---

Rose rolled her neck around upon being healed, though not completely. She touched a hand to her forehead, feeling wetness. She blinked the blood out of her eye and used the back of her hand to clean the rest from it. "You're tougher than you look, clone. Too bad you're still going down." She punched her fist into an open palm. She spit on the ground, as she dusted herself off, standing up. 

"If you say so," Superboy responded, blinking twice. His voice was even and calm -- it most likely got on Rose's nerves as evidenced by the scowl on her face. Both of them stared down the other, each taking fighting stances; Rose on the offense, Superboy on the defense. 

\--

["Dreams realized... That sounds nice, sir." 

"Does it? Forgive me. I must have been hiding among the humans for too long. Only a human would say such a thing."] 

\--

Superboy's hearing tuned in to hear the faint crackling of electricity in the background. Crackling... and footsteps. They were slow and steady. He willed himself to solely focus on Rose instead; and while it wasn't as easy as he thought, he did manage to hear what he assumed to be her heartbeat. Ba-thump. Ba-thump. Ba-thump. A rhythmic sound, a melody. Then it quickened slightly. 

"Not gonna make the first move? What, you got cold feet?" She taunted. She bounced on the balls of her feet in place. 

Superboy smirked again. "You're trying to read me, aren't you? Hard to read an opponent that isn't predictable, isn't it?" 

\--

["You're not wrong. It is a human thing. Take it from me." 

"Noted."

"However, I do have one last question... what do we do with Ms. Fairchild?" 

"We'll extract what we can from her body if there is any. If not, it's fine. We have 12 others of her kind to experiment on..."] 

\--

Rose glared harder, and reached into her belt. She spotted her discarded sword from the corner of her eye, and then glared back at Superboy. Her throat still stung from the lack of proper oxygen earlier, but he didn't need to know that. "Maybe I don't need to read you." She waited for the confusion to cross his face-- when it did, she quickly threw down a smoke bomb in his direction and dived for her sword. Superboy brought up his arms to defend himself, and coughed. (He remembered swiftly that he didn't need to breathe), and exhaled outwards, blowing the smoke outwards. It covered the room, and as Superboy looked around, he noticed that he couldn't see Rose. He looked left and right, but a whizzing noise let him know to look up. "All I have to do is keep you busy!" 

\--

["I assume you have no more questions."

"No, none that I can think of. I'm only left with the assumption that Superboy is to be the sole survivor of this outcome." 

"Of course he will. And that will be thanks to the Kryptonian part of him. Did you know that before they turned to science that they were a war-mongering, savage race? They conquered and colonized other far-away planets. It's rumored that not all Kryptonians welcomed the shift to the sciences...

This primal need to fight, to subjugate others didn't go away. It never did."] 

\--

Rose swung the sword down, but the blade broke upon contact with Superboy's red aura once more. She tucked herself into a roll, and crouched down low, sticking out her leg for a leg sweep. Her leg hit the red force-field of sorts and she was forced back as the clone formed an 'x' with his arms. "Then you'll die for nothing." He extended both of his arms and lifted Rose up into the air. She struggled, as layers of her armored uniform came off. 

\--

["It was merely suppressed.

And the more one suppresses their feelings, the more they are bound to resurface. Stronger and more ... _destructive_."]

\--

"Come on, Ravager." Superboy taunted. "No more smart things to say? Ran out of wit?" His hands curled up into fists, and she wheezed, coughing up blood. "Running out of air? Not being able to breathe will do that to you." He leisurely walked over to where she was pinned to the wall, above the room's entrance. She couldn't turn, couldn't fight the invisible force that kept her there. Her bottom lip quivered. 

\--

["The only way to remedy that ... is to let them be unabridged. Unfiltered. Unbound. To do this is to be human. A true, "Super"-human, if you will."

"Hence, Superboy..."

"Exactly."] 

\--

Superboy stared into the terrified, yet defiant eyes of Rose Wilson. She blinked, once, water springing up and gathering at the corners of her eyes. He completely closed his fist, and she exploded into bloody pieces, much like the others before her. With a sigh, Superboy lowered his hands and fell to his knees, his hands touching the blood-stained, and broken glass covered floor. His vision slightly blurred, and his head felt light.  _'The room is spinning.... I feel like I'm going to black out soon. Is this the price for using my powers consecutively?'_

Just then, his ears picked up the echo of a monstrous roar. Superboy rubbed at his face with a hand and steadied himself.  _'I might be able to fight one more before I completely crash. Whatever this is... I have to make it count. If Rose tried to kill me, there's no telling who or what else will...'_ He took some steps back, his protective red aura still up. 

The source of the roar entered, breaking some more of the wall-- Superboy guessed it wasn't a smart one, since it didn't use the door. Veins bulged from it's neck, and arms. It was similarly dressed like Superboy, in the sense that it wore black shorts and nothing else. The DNA strand tattoo burned and throbbed on it's left pectoral muscle and it's skin was a grotesque, ashen gray. There were irregular cracks in the skin around the face, chest, legs and arms as well as it's stomach. It had patches of black hair on it's head and it's eyes were red. 

\---

_**Superboy's POV:** _

_I don't care or what this thing is, or who stands in my way._

_I have to win._

_I have to keep fighting._

_I have to keep killing._

_I **will** survive, no matter what...._

 

_\---_

_**Prime Earth, Metropolis, Outskirts..** _

 

A dark purple and black portal opened. A figure draped in a tattered red cloak emerged, the portal closing behind them. Dark russet eyes stared out into the night sky above; noting the stars and clouds. It wasn't long before her vision of the peaceful night sky turned into that of a nightmarish red and orange with dust blocking out the sun. With a gasp, she rubbed at her eyes, and gazed at the sky again. 

Still peaceful and dark out. 

The woman stepped forward again, noting that she must have landed somewhere else. This definitely didn't look like home... The woman kept herself hidden, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword on the inside of her cloak, the other hand reaching inside to withdraw a picture. She stopped just behind a rock, overlooking the city just ahead. She looked down at the picture; it being of a symbol-- an 'S' inside a diamond with the point facing downwards. She looked up again, her eyes narrowing. She had to find him... 

The woman inhaled and steeled herself. She just hoped that she wasn't too late.

_'Please be alive.'_

__

_**\---** _

_**Superboy's POV:** _

_Because the fact of the matter is this:_

_I did not ask to be created._ _But I will decide the time and circumstance of my termination. I can't fight what I am, and that is an experiment._

_I'm not as disposable as Red or Rose. I'm different._

_I am a living weapon._

_I am called Superboy._

_And I will have my freedom._

_No. Matter. **What.**  _

_\---_

_To be continued in the final installment..._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! We're almost done with this. One more part to go!


End file.
